Jagmohan's ghost haunting BJP leaders

By Our Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI, OCT. 11. ``We had neither demanded his shifting from the Urban Development Ministry nor did we seek his ouster from the Union Cabinet,'' declared the former Chief Minister, Mr. Madan Lal Khurana, indicating that the ghost of the former Urban Development Minister, Mr. Jagmohan, still continues to haunt the Delhi BJP stalwarts.

Addressing a joint press conference along with the Outer Delhi MP, Mr. Sahib Singh Verma, here on Wednesday, Mr. Khurana said it were the wrong decisions taken by the New Delhi MP and the damage caused to the party which resulted in his being shifted to a new Ministry. He tried to stall the promises made by the BJP in its election manifesto during the 1993 and 1998 Assembly polls. ``I only jumped into the fray when damage was sought to be done to the party. Mr. Jagmohan had annoyed large sections and had not taken any action till date against any builder or official involved in unauthorised constructions or land grab. Had he done this, he should come out with their names,'' he said.

Mr. Khurana said as Lt-Governor, Mr. Jagmohan had always held that he was supreme, as far as land and building matters were concerned and the Central Government had no role. But when he became Union Minister, he overruled the Lt-Governor and said everything had to done through the Urban Development Ministry. ``These double standards are unacceptable and we will not allow any damage to the party's cause,'' he asserted.

Mr. Khurana said he alongwith Mr. Verma, Prof. V.K. Malhotra and Mr. Lal Behari Tiwari, had met the Prime Minister, Mr. Atal Behari Vajpayee, recently and sought his intervention in ensuring fulfillment of the party's promises during the Assembly polls. The Prime Minister directed them to meet new Union Urban Development Minister, Mr. Ananth Kumar, and discuss the problems.

He said during their meeting with Mr. Ananth Kumar, they requested him to take immediate action regarding issues which had been pending for a long time. These include implementation of the Malhotra Committee report in toto, revoking of cancellation orders issued to flat owners who have made alterations, regularisation of more than three lakh shops running in residential areas after payment of fine, steps be taken to regularise the 1,071 unauthorised colonies with modifications in the harsh terms and conditions for the regularisation process, re-launching of a simplified scheme for conversion from leasehold to freehold and the same be extended to commercial and industrial premises also and changes in the Master Plan of Delhi for regularisation of 15 industrial areas.

Mr. Verma said steps had already been initiated by the DDA and the MCD to put into action the regularisation process for unauthorised colonies and if need be a revised affidavit would be filed in the court to get the earlier conditions revoked. A scheme was also in the offing for building houses in the rural areas which would not require the clearance of the Town and Country Planning Department or the MCD.

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